STRICTLY SEATTLE 2018

STRICTLY SEATTLE is a complete immersion into the Seattle dance scene. Five adult programs inspire beginning through professional level dancers with rigorous physical and compositional training in a challenging and invigorating environment. Strictly Seattle is a supportive community of open experimentation and camaraderie where dancers form alliances for future collaborations.

Professional/Advanced Track

with Heather Kravas, Zoe Scofield, Jody Kuehner

Professional/Advanced sessions are for dancers at an advanced-to-professional level of training. Dancers develop a new work in collaboration with three celebrated Seattle choreographers. Highly challenging classes include daily contemporary technique, contemporary ballet, West African, creative process, partnering, improvisation, and Hip Hop. Audition at Velocity on July 8 (registration day) to confirm level and casting.

Dance Film Track

with KT Niehoff

Dance Film Track is for beginning-to-advanced filmmakers and dancers. Participants create their own short dance film while learning sound and choreographic elements, storyboarding, location scouting, styling, and more. Participants work with award-winning Seattle cinematographers and film composers, and can also drop into any dance class.

AdulT INTERMEDIATE TRACK

with Marlo Ariz + Daniel Costa

Adult Intermediate Session is for dancers with at least a few years of dance training who want to take their technique and artistry to the next level. Dancers develop a new work in collaboration with one of two celebrated Seattle choreographers. Classes include contemporary dance and ballet.

ADULT BEGINNING TRACK

with Maya Soto

Adult Beginning Session is for those with little or no previous dance experience. Participants learn the basics of contemporary movement and create a new work in collaboration with choreographer Maya Soto. Classes include contemporary dance and ballet.

ADULT BEGINNING HIP HOP TRACK

with Jaret Hughes

Adult Beginning Hip Hop Session is for those with little or no previous dance experience. This fun, high-energy track gives participants confidence with Hip Hop moves and rhythms. Dancers develop a new work in collaboration with veteran Hip Hop choreographer Jaret Hughes.

EVENTS

SH*T GOLD: THE DEEP END

SUN JUL 15 / 6PM–10PMVelocity 1621 12th Ave
FREE + open to all

The Deep End is the annual marathon of our celebrated open-mic performance night, SH*T GOLD, featuring raw works-in-progress in the spirit of experimentation and risk. It’s a SH*T GOLD marathon! We’re opening up the floor for long-form performance events up to 20 minutes in length. Like at any SH*T GOLD, your performance may be at any point in its development and in any live medium. We encourage raw works-in-progress, presented in the spirit of experimentation and risk. Dive into The Deep End as a resource for your creative development.

PARTICIPANT SHOWING

SAT JUL 20 / 7PMVelocity 1621 12th Ave
FREE + open to all

Strictly Seattle 2018 participants (in any track) share work in this informal showing. Participants can share past work or works-in-progress, or can team up with others to create something new.

This site-specific work—by choreographer Jody Kuehner with participants from the Strictly Seattle Professional/Advanced Session—used Freeway Park as a stage for performance. The park is a landmark of urban landscaping created by Lawrence Halprin in collaboration with his wife, the famous international dance innovator Anna Halprin, and this work highlighted the park as a safe space; rejuvenating and reclaiming it from its history as a place that has inspired fear due to a series of physical assaults that took place there. In partnership with The Freeway Park Association, with community partner First Hill Improvement Association

FREE LUNCHTIME TALKS

Dive further into topics specific to dance artists twice a week during Strictly Seattle in Velocity Founders Theater.

Injury Prevention: Tue, JULY 10th / 1:30-2:15pm

Nutrition: Thu, JULY 12th / 1:30-2:15pm

Seattle Dance/Dance as a Profession: Tue, JULY 17th / 1:30-2:15pm

Managing Stress in the Digital Age: Thu, JULY 19th / 1:30-2:15pm

Creating a Home: Mon, JULY 23rd / 1:30-2:15pm

Low Back Pain for Dancers: Wed, JULY 25th / 1:30-2:30pm

STRICTLY SEATTLE 2018 SCHEDULE + FACULTY/CHOREOGRAPHER BIOS

CHRISTIANA AXELSENOriginally from Seattle and recently returned from NYC, Christiana Axelsen has had the pleasure with Korhan Basaran, Molissa Fenley, Beth Gill, Jessica Jobaris, Mana Kawamura, Raja Kelly, Courtney Krantz, Veronica Lee, Zoe Scofield, Jules Skloot, Michou Szabo, Pam Tanowitz, and Christopher Williams. Her own work has been shown in Seattle, San Francisco, New York, Pittsburgh, Colorado and Istanbul. She has taught classes and workshops at New York University, Barnard College, Mount Holyoke College, Velocity Dance Center, Brooklyn Arts Exchange and the Conservatory of Modern Dance at Mimar Sinan University in Istanbul. Christiana graduated summa cum laude with dual degrees in Dance and Geology from Mount Holyoke College. She graduated from the Merce Cunningham Professional Training Program where she performed alongside the Repertory Understudy Company. She is the current Director of Bainbridge Dance Center.

DANIEL COSTACosta’s interest in dance was sparked at the age of 16 because of film centered around dance. He started learning from YouTube and eventually studied Funk Styles under Tom Mckie in Central New Jersey. He gravitated towards waving, popping and freestyle and continued his independent dance studies while seeking after performance opportunities with local hip hop artists and dance troupes. He was introduced to Modern dance at the age of 17 and started his formal, conservatory dance training at Mason Gross School of the Arts at Rutgers University at the age of 19. At Rutgers, Costa studied contemporary technique, improvisation and choreography under Doug Elkins, Randy James, Julia Ritter, Keith Thompson, Chien-Ying Wang, Manuel Vignoulle, Meaghan Frederick, Laura Peterson (NYC), Taryn Vander Hoop and Shen Wei Dance Arts, to name a few. He completed his Bachelor of Fine Arts in Dance and moved to Seattle, Washington in 2015 to work professionally as a choreographer, director, performer and teaching artist. As a freelance dance artist, Costa has worked with Chamber Dance Company, Madboots Dance, Stephanie Liapis, The Three Yells, Wade Madsen, Cherdonna Shinatra, and has performed works by Crystal Pite, Kate Weare, Shen Wei, Larry Keigwin, and Manuel Vignoulle, among others. Discover more about Costa and his Seattle-based dance company at danielcostadance.com! / Photo by Jim Coleman

JARET HUGHES has over 20 years of dance experience, with Hip Hop being his specialty along with training in Modern, Jazz, Ballet and African. Jaret has over 18 years of choreographing and teaching experience with all ages, including over 15 years at Elizabeth’s Dance Dimensions in Bellevue, Washington. Jaret’s choreography credits include the L.A. Clippers Spirit Dance Team (guest choreographer), Seattle Supersonics Dance Team for five years, founder of 2wisted Elegance from Seattle and LA’s debut of 2wisted Elegance with the help of his good friend Joey Cooper, Modazz Competition Teams at Elizabeth’s Dance Dimensions, co-choreographer and dancer for EVE in LA, and assistant choreographer / assistant Artistic Director for the “Invitation Feedback” video contest submission for Janet Jackson. Jaret Competed on Destination Stardom in Hawaii. Jaret’s performances include: Seattle’s Kube 93’s Summer Jam for three years with Twisted Elegance, which included sharing the main stage with artists such as Destiny’s Child, Ginuwine, Busta Rhymes, Blackstreet, Naughty By Nature, and many more; various Hip Hop shows throughout Seattle including Daniel Cruz’s Battle of Seattle Remix 3 and 4 and, most recently while living in LA for two and a half years, performances with Breed OCLA for numerous dance competitions and guest performances for the DVD Release Party for Step Up 2: The Streets. Jaret has shared his choreography expertise with various high school and college dance teams throughout Washington, California, and Idaho.

JODY KUEHNERJody Kuehner is part dance artist and part bio drag queen named Cherdonna Shinatra. Jody is in her seventh year dancing for the Pat Graney Company. She has also been Pat’s dance intern for the company’s prison project “Keeping the Faith. She’s in her fifth year dancing with Mark Haim and has acted as his Administrative Assistant and Rehearsal Director for various projects. She worked as Dayna Hanson’s Production Coordinator for two evening length works and has been Assistant to the Director for Hanson’s feature length film “Improvement Club”. She is also Hanson’s Assistant Director for the most recent work “The Clay Duke”. From 2003-2009, Jody was a member of d9 Dance Collective and has also danced with Wade Madsen, KT Niehoff, Laura Curry, and Amy O’Neal (Tiny Rage) among others. Jody’s persona Cherdonna Shinatra performs regularly with DeLouRue Productions and also performs periodically with paulanow productions and NARK Magazine. She and Lou Henry Hoover made work as “The Cherdonna and Lou Show” for five years, teaching, producing, performing. They were recognized as Seattle Magazine’s 2010 Spotlight Award Winners. The Cherdonna and Lou Show also presented work and taught at the CORD conference on dance and gender in 2012. Jody currently teaches technique at Velocity Dance Center and has taught at their summer intensive Strictly Seattle as well as the Seattle Festival of Dance Improvisation. She has presented choreography at On The Boards, Velocity Dance Center, Northwest Film Forum, Bumbershoot and the Joyce SoHo NYC. She is Velocity’s Artist in Residence for 2014 and is being produced by Velocity’s Made in Seattle program. Jody is also in residence at KT Neihoff’s space 10 Degrees. She holds a BFA in Dance Performance from the University of South Florida and has been supported by the Seattle Mayor’s Office of Arts and Cultural Affairs and 4Culture.

STEPHANIE LIAPISStephanie Liapis’s career as a professional dancer, choreographer and educator spans sixteen years and includes work with Doug Varone & Dancers and Nicholas Leichter Dance, as well as Susan Marshall & Company, Nancy Bannon, the MET Ballet, Netta Yerushalmy, Faye Driscoll, the Chamber Dance Company and Aquila Theater among others. She has had the pleasure teaching at the professional studios of Gina Gibney Dance, Mark Morris Dance Center, the 92nd Street Y and Dance New Amsterdam in NYC. Stephanie served as adjunct faculty at Hunter College, Barnard College, the University of Washington and SUNY Purchase College, and as an Assistant Professor of Dance at Long Island University-Brooklyn campus. She teaches master classes and sets her work nationally and abroad. Her work has been presented in NYC, Detroit, Seattle, Phoenix, Switzerland and Singapore. Stephanie holds a BFA in dance from NYU Tisch School of the Arts and an MFA in dance from the University of Washington.

KT NIEHOFFis a Seattle-based artist who makes events, dances, music, films, classes, and spaces, and fosters creative communities. She was featured in Dance Magazine’s “International Women in Dance” (’08) and on the covers of Dance Teacher Magazine (’12) and City Arts Seattle (’13). Her interest in dance film began in 2008. Since then she has had the privilege of learning from filmmakers Thierry De Mey, Victoria Marks, and Alla Kovgan as well as working with cinematographers Ben Kasulke, Christian Hansen, Sebastien Scandiuzzi, and Linus Phillips. To date she has created four short films and her work has been screened at the American Dance Festival, NEXT Dance Film Festival, Dance for Reel at Emory University, Green Valley State University, and the San Francisco Dance Film Festival. She was the co-founder of Velocity Dance Center and in 2011 opened her own creative research space on Capitol Hill called 10 degrees. / Photo by Tim Summers

MAYA SOTOis a choreographer, performer and award winning arts educator. Her work includes concert performance, movement installations, dance for theater, and film. Maya brings together classical dance training and a sense of imaginative play. She has created six evening-length works including Inner Galactic (2015) which was supported by creative residencies at 10 degrees in partnership with Velocity Dance Center (SEA), Exit Space (SEA) and Higher Ground (OR). Her choreography has been commissioned by numerous West Coast festivals and venues including On the Boards (SEA) and Conduit’s Dance+ Festival (PDX). As a performer, she has worked with many notable artists including Amy O’Neal, Sandstrommovement, and KT Neihoff. Currently, she dances for Michele Miller/Catapult Dance. Maya is a passionate advocate for arts education. She teaches dance at Velocity Dance Center, the Northwest School, Seattle Theatre Group – Disney Musicals in Schools, and the Museum of Pop Culture. For 10 years, she has worked extensively as a teaching artist in the public school system and developed several successful youth dance programs. In 2014, she received a Velocity Dance Champion Award for significant contribution to Seattle dance. Maya holds a BFA in dance from Cornish College of the Arts and a Washington State Professional Teaching Certificate.

KATE WALLICHKate Wallich is a Seattle-based choreographer, director and teacher – named one of Dance Magazine’s “25 to Watch” in 2015. She received her training from Interlochen Arts Academy and Cornish College of the Arts (Magna Cum Laude). In 2010, she founded her dance company, The YC, with co-founder Lavinia Vago. Her work has been commissioned and presented nationally and internationally by On the Boards, Velocity Dance Center, The Rauschenberg Foundation, MANA Contemporary, Springboard Danse Montréal, TOES, Bumbershoot, Conduit, City Arts Festival, The Frye Art Museum, Henry Art Gallery and Seattle Art Museum as well as by leading West Coast companies Whim W’Him, Raw Dance and Northwest Dance Project. She was a Visiting Artist at University of Washington, University of Oregon, Cornish College of the Arts and University of Utah. Kate has created two evening-length works with The YC: Super Eagle produced through Velocity Dance Center’s Made In Seattle program and Splurge Land produced through On the Board’s Performance Production Program. Kate has received awards and grants from 4Culture, Artist Trust, The Glenn H. Kawasaki Foundation, Seattle Magazine’s “Spotlight Artist Award” and is a 2 time AIR recipient of the Rauschenberg Residency in Captiva, Florida.